The subject matter of the present invention relates to a software package stored in the memory of a workstation or other computer system, hereinafter called the “Single Well Predictive Model” or “SWPM”, which will enable a user to introduce a first user objective and a first set of input data, a processor in the computer system executing the SWPM software in response to the first user objective and first set of input data, the SWPM software generating a first specific workflow in response the first user objective and executing a first plurality of software modules which comprise the first specific workflow utilizing the first set of input data to thereby generate a first product or a result of the execution, the SWPM software generating a second specific workflow in response a second user objective and executing a second plurality of software modules which comprise the second specific workflow utilizing a second set of input data to thereby generate a second product or result of the execution.
Generally speaking, during the execution of software in a processor of a computer system for the purpose of generating a final desired product, it is often necessary to execute a first software module in the processor of the computer system to produce a first product and then, separately and independently, execute a second software module in the processor in response to the first product to produce a second product, and then, separately and independently, execute a third software module in the processor in response to the second product to produce the final desired product. In order to produce the final desired product, it may be necessary to separately and independently execute in the processor of the computer system a multitude of software modules in order to produce the final desired product. The aforementioned execution of the multitude of software modules, in a separate and independent fashion, is very time consuming and is a very laborious task.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a ‘software based computer system’ (hereinafter called the ‘Single Well Predictive Model’ or ‘SWPM’) that will: (1) automatically produce a first specific workflow comprised of a first plurality of software modules in response to a first set of user objectives and automatically execute the first specific workflow in response to a first set of input data to produce a first desired product, and (2) automatically produce a second specific workflow comprised of a second plurality of software modules in response to a second set of user objectives and automatically execute the second specific workflow in response to a second set of input data to produce a second desired product.
When the SWPM software based computer system is utilized, there would no longer be any need to separately and independently execute the first plurality of software modules of the first workflow in order to produce the first desired product, and there would no longer be any need to separately and independently execute the second plurality of software modules of the second workflow in order to produce the second desired product. As a result, a considerable amount of processor execution time would be saved and, in addition, there would no longer be any need to perform the aforementioned laborious task of separately and independently executing a plurality of software modules in order to produce a final desired product.
The aforementioned ‘software based computer system’ of the present invention, known as the ‘Single Well Predictive Model’ or ‘SWPM’, is adapted for use in the oil industry. In the oil industry, ideally, all production activities performed in connection with a well should utilize any knowledge concerning the reservoir (e.g., timely pressure interference and rock heterogeneity) adjacent to the well being drilled. However, as a result of the absence of a common three-dimensional (3D) predictive model that can be used not only by reservoir engineers but also by production/drilling/well services engineers, the gap between the reservoir knowledge and day-to-day well decisions remains one of the most significant sources of inefficiency in field management and in field operations. Due to a similar gap between reservoir modeling and production modeling, it is our understanding that clients rarely utilize much of the data that has been acquired—they certainly don't maximize what can be interpreted from that data. Furthermore, most of the reservoirs do not have a realistic reservoir predictive model. It is estimated that only 20% of producing reservoir fields have a reservoir model. This indicates that most of the reservoir fields are operated on the basis of knowledge about individual wells. There are a number of reasons for this, chief among them being: the need for necessary experienced personnel, the need for ‘fit-for-purpose’ software, the sheer size of the reservoir models, and the time required.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a ‘Single Well Predictive Model’ or ‘SWPM’ software based computer system that will enable a company's staff to get closer to well operations while empowering them with fast interpretation tools utilizing all available data and 3D reservoir models built around a specific well thus enhancing the quality of decisions in field management. The ‘SWPM’ software based computer system represents an opportunity for a company to differentiate itself in the market by ‘adding value’, where such value is added by introducing a new interpretation service (i.e., the SWPM software) to the company's current and future data acquisition tools and services. In addition, the ‘real-time capability’ associated with the ‘Single Well Predictive Model (SWPM)’ software based computer system will be appreciated and utilized significantly in the oil industry because the oil industry as a whole is rapidly progressing toward an ‘on-time’ and ‘data-to-decision’ work environment. Finally, the attributes of the ‘SWPM’ software based computer system of the present invention, including integration and interactiveness and intuitiveness, will be considered when the next generation of ‘field predictive models’ is created. In addition, there exists a need for an interactive and intuitive flow simulation based ‘Single Well Predictive Model (SWPM)’ which is used for the purpose of integrating static and dynamic measurements with completion data that can be used by non-reservoir simulation experts. The SWPM will enable the building of 3-D comparative prediction models starting from 1-D information (i.e. from the well). The SWPM will read the formation information of the subject well and create a reservoir flow model for the selected drainage area of the well. From 1 D to 3D, property creation will be done stochastically and then fine-tuned with respect to the available dynamic data of the well. Once the most likely reservoir properties are estimated, SWPM can be used to investigate various predictive scenarios, such as customizing completion strategy, investigating drilling strategy, predicting well performance considering the impact on the reservoir, demonstrating the value of additional data on decision making, and demonstrating the value of new technologies. SWPM will be built around optimized workflows including, petrophysical property estimation, static model construction, model tuning, drilling, completion, production, or intervention. Ease of use and intuitiveness are of utmost importance. SWPM will be used either sequentially in elapsed time mode, or in filly automatic real-time mode.